May 3, 2016 – Today is World Press Freedom Day – an event designed to highlight the importance of free speech as a human right. Having free speech lets journalists investigate problems happening all over the globe, often at the expense of their own privacy, or even personal safety. So F-Secure, a Finnish cyber security company, is taking steps to help journalists safeguard their right to free speech by offering them free VPN subscriptions.

According to Reporters without Borders’ 2016 World Press Freedom Index, Finland has the freest media in the world, making it fitting that this year’s World Press Freedom Day event is being held in the Finnish capital of Helsinki. However, the report also noted the overall freedom of press is in a global decline, and dropped by 13.6 percent since 2013.

“Free speech is something nurtured by some governments, but many see it as a threat when mobilized in an institution like the media,” says F-Secure Cyber Security Advisor Erka Koivunen. “And even though technology has given governments unprecedented surveillance capabilities, it’s also given people ways to protect themselves. Encryption is probably the best tool available to journalists if they want to conduct investigatory work without suffering reprisals from oppressive governments and institutions.”

Journalists can use VPNs such as F-Secure Freedome to encrypt their communications, change their virtual location, and block malicious websites and online tracking attempts. And to help make using encryption more accessible for journalists, F-Secure is offering free 12-month subscriptions for Freedome to journalists until May 15.

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